Over the next few years, the members of Mobb Deep found themselves in a series of beefs, starting with Snoop after the release of his diss track "New York, New York." Watching Snoop kick over buildings in the video, particularly the CitiBank building in Queens, Prodigy took the song as disrespect, and rounded up Capone-N-Noreaga and Tragedy Khadafi for a response on "LA, LA."

Prodigy says 2Pac was quick to prove himself as the newest signee to Death Row Records when he responded to "LA, LA" with "Hit 'Em Up" — which prompted the Mobb Deep track "Drop a Gem on 'Em." The song had just been added to rotation at New York's WQHT (97.1 FM) when Prodigy and Havoc heard the news that 2Pac had been murdered. Out of respect to his family, they called the station and immediately had the track pulled.

"Shit was getting nasty at that time," Prodigy says remorsefully. "It's just sad how it turned out. We was all young and wild."

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After twenty years of putting out "reality rap," not much has changed as far as Mobb Deep's creative process is concerned. "We're constantly working," Prodigy says of the group's longevity. At the moment, Prodigy is trying to keep up with the times by establishing Mobb Deep as a brand through his record label and clothing, jewelry and publishing ventures. It's all part of Mobb Deep coming into the 21st century.

"It's become a game of survival to see who can do the most," Prodigy says reflectively. "The world we live in today is much bigger than just music."